French for the sorry cow, a monster that lived only on good womenall skin and bone, because its food was so extremely scarce. The old English romancers invented another monster, which they called Bicorn, as fat as the other was lean; but, luckily, he had for food good and enduring husbands, of which there is no lack. (See BICORN.)

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O noble wyvës, ful of heigh prudence,

Let noon humilitie your tongës nayle,

Ne lat no clerk have cause of diligence

To write of you a story of such mervayle

As of Griseldes, pacient and kynde,

Lest Chichi-vache you swolwe in hir entraile.

Chaucer: LEnvoye de Chaucer, v. 9064.

The French chiche-face means thin-face. Lydgate wrote a poem entitled Bycorne and Chichevache.